Inside the numbers of FSU vs. USF

Breaking down the imporant stats that lead to the Seminole win

Sep. 30, 2012

Written by

Eric Fisher

Senior Staff Writer

Florida State’s 30-17 win over South Florida may not have been the resounding beatdown many expected out of the Seminoles, but there were still some interesting conclusions to draw from the numbers from Saturday’s game. Without further ado, here’s a look at five key stats and what they mean for Florida State.

6.4

The Seminoles didn’t erupt for the kind of offensive outburst they had become accustomed to over the first month of the season, when they scored at least 49 points in each of their first four victories. But despite only ending up with 30 points, Florida State still moved the ball efficiently. The offense racked up 425 total yards on the night on 66 plays, which shakes out to a solid 6.4 yards per play. The offense’s lack of scoreboard fireworks was more a reflection of their inefficiency on third down (5-15 on the night) and self-destructive penalties like the one that wiped out what would’ve been a big touchdown run by Chris Thompson.

29

Florida State’s defense struggled early on, allowing USF to rack up 183 total yards in the first quarter. However, after that shaky opening frame, the Seminoles choked out BJ Daniels and the USF offense over the next two quarters. In the 2nd and 3rd quarters, a stretch in which Florida State extended its lead from 7-3 to 30-10, the Bulls gained just 29 yards—18 in the second quarter, and 11 in the third. In that stretch, South Florida’s only offensive success came off of a blocked punt that set it up inside Florida State’s 10-yard line for an easy touchdown.

33.3

The kick return game provided another big boost for Florida State on Saturday, a week after Lamarcus Joyner’s 90-yard sprint on a kick return helped set up a crucial second-half score against Clemson. After the Bulls opened up the scoring Saturday by grabbing a quick 3-0 lead and instilling some hope in their home crowd, Karlos Williams ripped off an impressive 59-yard return to the USF 37 that set up EJ Manuel and company with a short field they promptly turned into a 7-3 Florida State lead. The Seminoles never trailed again from there. The return game was strong on the whole night, as Florida State averaged 33.3 yards per runback on three attempts. Meanwhile, Florida State’s own kickoff coverage was typically stingy, allowing USF to average just 12.6 yards per return.

6

Florida State’s passing game finally saw its tight ends make a more tangible impact on Saturday, as Nick O’Leary and Kevin Haplea combined for six grabs between them, including a touchdown to Haplea in the third quarter. O’Leary had a career-high four catches for 40 yards, while Haplea collected two receptions for 12 yards as he made one grab for 11 yards to go along with his one-yard touchdown snag. The productive night for the duo almost doubled their season output, as they entered Saturday with seven combined catches.

73

EJ Manuel continued his efficient ways against USF, completing 19-26 attempts for a 73 percent completion percentage. That’s right in line with Manuel’s 73.4 percent season average, a figure that ranks No. 7 nationally and represents arguably the strongest aspect of Manuel’s all-around game.